L. L Bean Supply Chain

In addition increases the costs due to out of date and damage lots of inventory, which are also leading to high shrinkage level for the retailer. It is possible to overcome these barriers and enhance the company’s reputation, increase customer satisfactions including high level of profitability by practising good inventory management system in place (Warren, Reeve, & Duchac, 2013).

Abstract —There are some complex and compelling challenges that global manufacturing industries should face, which includes price fluctuation, supply-chain inefficiencies and increasing customer expectations. In order to meet the demand of this economic environment, manufacturers need to find innovative, smarter ways to face those challenges. Thus, the efficient inventory management becomes urgent to manufacturers and it could help improve profitability and increase customer satisfaction. This paper aims to talk about what inventory management is and its importance, what problems inventory management might have and how to improve inventory management efficiency.

Warehouse layouts were changed and its proprietary warehouse software adjusted to help forecast inventory demands The improved inventory model called for inventory to be managed as follows: (1) High demand inventory based on past sales and forecasts is retained at multiple distribution centers (2) Drop shipment where after searching Amazon’s inventory it searches inventory of manufacturer and wholesaler transferring the customer’s order to the wholesaler or manufacturer to complete the customer’s order (3) The third inventory mechanism is to allow vendors and retailers to offer products on Amazon’s website. One of the benefits of this inventory sourcing is that the customer is able to compare prices and make selection about price and delivery options after comparison. Additionally, in tapping into this three prong inventory system, the

Bean is an application of a probability distribution based on prior year demand errors. The errors are applied to each item, both “never out” and “new” items for the current catalog. There is no consideration of the impact of applying this distribution is calculated with prior year “new” item data and applying it to current year “new” items, should be a major issue of concern for management. The demand forecast method should be able to help control inventory levels, Stuart Dunkin (2013) states, “An inventory replenishment system that is based on a demand forecast (demand driven) can reduce the risk of lost sales while improving service.” L.L. Bean’s current inventory control does not control the risk of lost sales, Rol Fessenden, L.L. Bean’s Manager of Inventory Systems, recognizes the current difficulty they have with predicting customer demand, and that the high demand items they are unable to get more inventory for, “. . . leave us just turning customers away” (Schleifer,

Despite its potential success in the social entertainment industry, Beyond the Bean is heavily threatened by changing economic conditions. Customer attendance is forecasted to decline as a result of consumers’ low disposable incomes. Census data has indicated that the annual median household income in London is $64 743 and the average disposable income is $14 583.40, the second lowest in major Ontario cities.3 A majority of this disposable income is split between necessities such as shelter, food, transportation, clothing, and other miscellaneous expenses. These households have low-cost lifestyles and engage in inexpensive methods of entertainment. Therefore, the community will view Beyond the Bean as a luxury entertainment business and will

At the core of L.L.Bean’s pricing and promotion strategy lies its inventory strategy. L.L.Bean’s inventory strategy segments its products into ‘core’ and ‘non-core’ items. Core items are products in constant high demand, those the company never want to be out-of-stock. These include items like Bean Boots, the Deluxe Book Pack, their Barn Jackets, and the ever-popular Boat and Tote bag. These items sell year-round and are not influenced by seasonal shopping behaviors (Cooke, 2011).

us all their manufacturing defects of existing L.L.Bean products at an agreed upon reduced rate,

Store-level data were collected, analyzed and transmitted electronically to see how a particular region, district, store, department within a store or item was performing. This eliminated stock-outs, reduced the need for markdowns on slow-moving stock and maximized inventory turnover. The benchmark information across stores was also a valuable tool to help "problem" stores.

Through the end of the 1980's, most software packages for distributors placed an emphasis on sales and accounting related modules. In the early 1990's, many distributors recognized that they needed help controlling and managing their largest asset, inventory. In response to this need, several computer software companies developed comprehensive inventory management modules and systems. These new packages include many new features, designed to help distributors effectively manage warehouse stock. But after implementing new software, many distributors don't feel that they have gained control of their inventory. These wholesalers continue to face many of the same challenges they experienced with their

In addition to inventory management, sales and transaction charts illustrate helpful information such as slow days, peak daily hours, and other insights that can help merchants arrange employee schedules and maximize business opportunities. All reports can be exported for use in accounting software like QuickBooks. ShopKeep’s inventory system is a cut above other similarly priced POS products. ShopKeep is a no-contract, pay-as-you-go, monthly subscription service. There are no extra fees for maintenance and service and all tech support is included in the monthly charge. Shopkeep’s pricing is simple: $49 per month/per register – one of the cheapest in the industry. (POS Options,

The integration of inventory data and sales. When placed together the company knowledge of the retail and customers the decision is made on customer priority not in FIFO method (first in, first out) this is done for satisfaction customer needs. They can also use Inventory control which is the monitor of goods used for production and inventory management methods (Software, think¬-tank, 2017: par.3).

In businesses, most of the functions are interlaced and connected to each other with key aspects like supply chain management, logistics and inventory management forming the backbone of the business delivery system. Inventory management helps company determine the health of the supply chain as well as impact the financial well-being of the organization. Every organization therefore constantly tries to maintain optimal inventory curbing on the wastage due to their traditional policies service level such as tracking of inventory by humans.

In order to fully and efficiently utilize our proposed vendor managed inventory system, we have performed extensive research of numerous hardware and software configurations. Among the many obvious requirements of the system are cost, scalability, compatibility, and ease of use. Some methods for consideration are outlined below.

Managing inventory, the order process, is a difficult task and if not handled properly leads to high inventory costs. It has always been tricky to manage and predict the perfect amount of inventory. Hence the most commonly known question arises, ‘Is Inventory Evil?’ Too much inventory will increase the inventory holding cost while too little can result in a shortage. To avoid such impasse, Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) is used. Vendor managed inventory is defined as the technique in which the vendor/supplier takes the responsibility of managing or optimizing the inventory of the distributor. This enables a mutually advantageous relationship in which both sides can manage the flow and availability of goods with

Consumers have many choices when deciding where to purchase their goods. While retailer managers are deciding how to win the consumer’s business and increase revenue, they are also constantly trying to figure out ways to reduce costs. Technology helps retail managers improve areas of inventory and supply chain management as well as customer satisfaction and loss prevention (Green, 2002). This paper explains how technology